Beans! Edward's beans finally were ready to harvest last week. He got six. But quantity was not an issue. He was thrilled to pick them, and, John reports, eager to eat them. (It was Wednesday so I was at class.) There may be more, but probably not ever enough all at the same time for everyone to have a serving. Lesson for next year--not all the seeds will produce stalks.Blueberries! We'd been reading Robert McCloskey's "Blueberries for Sal" and the boys were eager to go to "blueberry hill." This not being 1940s Maine with open fields of wild berries, we visited a local farm where you can pick your own over the July 4th weekend. Daniel was a bit nervous that there might be a bear, but we reassured him that there are no bears in Iowa.
We had a great time, and the boys were surprisingly dexterous, picking only the ripe berries, not the mounds of green ones that are probably ready now. They even waited until we got back to the car to wash some berries before eating any, though we found out that they don't spray them at all, so it probably would have been OK to eat off the bush. A little dirt never hurt anyone, right? I'm hoping we'll go back again sometime this month.
(Note to self: don't dress kid in green shirt and green hat before attempting to take nature pictures.)Farmer's market! We try to make it to the market each Saturday morning. Edward gets his own dollar (or two as needed) to pick something to purchase. (We also get a sweet treat to share--usually an apple turnover, delicious!) When it comes to the vegetables, he really likes the idea of "something new" and has picked a different one every week--asparagus, broccoli, spinach, onion, summer squash--all of which he has eaten and enjoyed. At first he thought he didn't like the asparagus, which wouldn't have surprised me, but after it sat on his plate a bit he gave it another try, this time actually
taking a full bite (rather than touching it with his tongue and rejecting) and he ate it all and asked for more. He keeps asking if we can have it again, and I'm having a hard time explaining the seasonal nature of certain crops. Last night we had grilled summer squash with pesto--tasty! I suggested that we could grow zucchini/summer squash next year, which I may live to regret, as everyone I've ever known who has grown it has ended up with at least three times as much as they could possibly eat! (Note to self: Do not pose for picture two days before desperately-needed haircut after wearing a sun hat all morning in the berry fields.)Fire station! On the way to the Farmer's Market one morning, the ladder truck drove right by us, and I guessed from its route and direction that it was headed back to the station, which is across from the market. We hurried our pace a bit and got there in time to see it back in, lights flashing. Then the boys wanted to go closer, and we discovered that the crew had just cleaned the truck bay and were all standing around with no immediate task. Our boys were welcomed by about eight firefighters, each one more eager than the next to show them a good time. They sat in the trucks, saw the rescue boat, explored some of the gear (though the ranking firefighter advised against actually trying on the hat since it's so heavy) and got bags full of coloring books, trading cards (with pictures of the trucks and the firefighters we met), stickers and temporary tattoos.
They now think they own the place. We were in the area again Friday evening and saw a firefighter getting exercise by walking around the block carrying a radio to hear any potential call. The boys found this fascinating and insisted that we walk up to the truck bay again to see if the doors were open. They were, and the exercising firefighter was just getting back as we walked up. So he gave them the tour all over again. Apparently it never gets old.
Now when the boys play firefighter, they give each other the names of those we've met--Daniel usually is "Firefighter Mark," Edward is "Firefighter Jason or Lance" and John is "Firefighter Will." They tell me I'm the firefighter cook. I have a new goal to introduce them to one of Iowa City's female firefighters, lest they believe only men can do the job. This is their firetruck with Edward driving, Daniel sitting "on the hoses" and John relegated to the rear. In between calls, they "sleep" in the fire station (tent.)Fireworks! Edward started talking about fireworks a few weeks before the 4th. I said I would take him, but we didn't make concrete plans. I figured if he forgot about it or was too tired, we'd skip it. (I actually love fireworks, so it wasn't an issue of me hoping he'd forget.) We had the most beautiful weather the week leading up to the 4th, but the day of was cloudy with torrential rains in the forecast. Those held off the whole day, until about 7:30 p.m. as we were leaving a cookout with friends. We headed home to put Daniel to bed, trying to prepare Edward for the fact that they couldn't have fireworks in the rain. He insisted that he still wanted to go, and it did stop raining, so at about 9 we set off.
We parked a few blocks south of the viewing point, walked over, and found a spot to set our chair. Waiting was difficult, but it was only about 20 minutes or so. The show in the next town over started a bit before ours and though all we could see was the flashing on the horizon, Ed thought it was the real thing. After a few minutes he said, "Are any of them going to be not white?" Shortly after that, our show started and Ed figured out the difference distance makes. He immediately clapped his hands over his ears and I thought he was going to want to leave, but he settled and was fine, as long as he covered his ears. After about 10 minutes he suddenly sat up, panicked: "Mom! I have an itch!" This was a momentary crisis, because to scratch would mean to remove his hands from his ears. We decided I'd cover his ears while he dealt with the itch. After about 15 minutes he said he was ready to leave. I think this was more about his limited attention span than anything else, because it wasn't during a particularly booming part of the show. It turned out to be for the best because as we were walking away the finale started, with the accompanying increase in decibel level. This was not greeted with enthusiasm. Keeping his hands over his ears, he started running ahead of me. It was a well-lit downtown area so I could keep up and keep track of him. He shouted: "I want to go where I can't hear it!" I told him we'd be able to hear it even back at our house, but that by the time we walked back to the car it would be over. It was, and by the time we were on our way home he declared the outing a success and said he liked fireworks. We'll see how he feels and what he remembers next year. By then I don't think Daniel will be denied. He was absolutely falling asleep this year and couldn't have made it until 10 p.m.
This weekend, the boys enjoyed a sleep-over at Grandma and Grandpa's while John and I went to Des Moines for a 40th birthday party for some dear friends who we do not get to see often enough. We all had a great time. When we called the next morning the boys were not ready to come home, and Grandma and Grandpa were agreeable to having them stay until late afternoon. John and I took the opportunity to out for brunch, but learned that we can't truly shake our parent routines, as we arrived an hour before they opened. No worries--we went to another place and had a delicious breakfast al fresco. By late afternoon though, John was getting antsy, and practically dashed out the door as soon as his mom called to say the boys were up from naps and ready to come home. It's so refreshing to have a break, but we do miss them when they're gone.
I made it through the "ouch" apex of the semester workload curve described here a few weeks ago. It's still busy, but not quite as all-consuming. Would be even better if all five team members were equal contributors to the effort. One in particular has been incredibly frustrating, in that he acknowledges he's not doing the work, but makes no effort to change his behavior. I should let it go, but it's hard. Three weeks to go.
Finally, I keep thinking I should write down some of Daniel's amusing expressions/lexicon, but then the time for blogging gets away from me. Here are some I can think of now, but I may have to come back to this list in the days/weeks ahead as more come to mind:
"muh-quipment"=equipment, usually on the playground
"frcycling"=recycling; can refer to the truck or the act of placing items in the bin
"lock it up"= unlock; yes, the opposite of the standard interpretation. Daniel has figured out how to lock the car door with his foot, which involves pushing down on the button. So when he wants me to unlock it, he knows it has to come back up, hence, lock it "up."
